At a time when ghost guns are being found on Buffalo streets more frequently than ever, New York State has enacted new laws aimed at clamping down on these untraceable, assemble-at-home weapons.
Buffalo has seen a significant rise in ghost guns this year, with city police having confiscated more than 50 such guns, according to the department.
Compare that to all of last year, when city cops recovered five of these firearms. From 2018 through 2020, police seized 15 ghost guns, said Deputy Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia.
"There are so many ghost guns that are out on the street right now that it's a pandemic in its own right," Gramaglia said. "We don't know how many are out there."
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday signed into law measures that make it a crime to sell ghost guns and for anyone other than gun dealers or gunsmiths to possess one of the main components needed to assemble a firearm. The moves were hailed by advocacy groups like New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, Brady and Giffords.
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One of the new laws, which goes into effect in four months, makes it illegal to possess what are known as "unfinished frames or receivers." Those are the lower portions of a gun that lack serial numbers and, by themselves, are not considered to be a firearm under federal law. With some additional work, they can be used to make the untraceable weapons.
The law criminalizing the sale of ghost guns goes into effect in six months. That law also requires gunsmiths and dealers to register ghost guns in their possession, according to the governor's office.
Between Oct. 15 and 18, Buffalo police executed four search warrants that resulted in 15 illegally possessed guns being confiscated, including four ghost guns, Gramaglia said. In addition, police seized more than $50,000 in cash, as well as marijuana, crack cocaine and pills.
On Oct. 15, police raided a home on Ryan Street in South Buffalo. Inside, police allegedly found two guns, including one ghost gun, along with more than 10 pounds of marijuana.
Jeffery T. Roche, 22, was charged with felony marijuana possession, as well as three misdemeanor drug and gun charges, according to Buffalo City Court records.
Police on Oct. 18 executed a search warrant on Freund Street, not far from the Cheektowaga line, and allegedly found eight illegally possessed weapons, including two ghost guns, as well as narcotics.
Anthony J. Vargas, 22, was charged with three felonies and three misdemeanors consisting of drug charges and a weapons charge, according to court records.
On Thursday, police recovered five guns, including two more ghost guns, Gramaglia said.
In August, federal authorities announced the arrest of a Woodlawn Avenue man accused of illegally manufacturing ghost guns.
The prevalence of ghost guns, the parts for which can be bought online without a background check, is rising around the country.
Earlier this month, Los Angeles police said they had seen the seizures of ghost guns rise by 400% since 2017, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Police in New York City recovered 17 ghost guns in 2018 and about 150 last year, according to the New York Times.
Earlier this year, President Biden announced several executive actions involving guns, including a move aimed at cracking down on ghost guns.
Buffalo police are finding ghost guns mostly possessed by individuals involved in group violence or gang violence, Gramaglia said.
"We've had other people outright admit to us that they've sold a substantial amount," Gramaglia said, noting that upon executing search warrants, police have encountered situations where they've found multiple empty boxes from the kits purchased online.
In Buffalo, arrests for felony gun possession are up nearly 40% compared to last year, and the number of arrests is directly correlated to the number of guns on city streets, he said.
Buffalo, like many places across the country, also has seen a significant surge in shootings last year and this year.
There were 287 people injured or killed in shootings in Buffalo from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30, according to Buffalo police.
That's a 51% increase compared to the average for that nine-month period over the last decade, when Buffalo averaged 190 shooting victims.
Over the last decade, the city's average for persons shot for an entire year is 254 people. In 2020, 355 people were injured or killed in shootings.
In addition to the new ghost gun laws, Hochul also signed a bill that makes it a felony to design or transform guns to make them look like a toy.
Gun Sense NY, an advocacy group, said it applauded Hochul and the state Legislature for enacting the legislation, with support from the Western New York delegation.
"Her commitment to gun safety and gun safety legislation will ensure that New York State continues to lead the nation in gun violence prevention and continues New York at or near the top in all categories of gun safety," Paul McQuillen, the group's executive director, said in a text message.
